By Aarti Bhana From your morning coffee to the packet of chips you might find yourself munching on later in the afternoon, everything you consume today will have started in a field. Telecoms giant Econet and Norway-based agricultural products firm Yara International have launched an initiative aimed at kick-starting young entrepreneurs in the agri-food space. Generation Africa was launched on Thursday, together with the announcement of … Continue reading Coffee beans, potatoes and opportunity

By Aarti Bhana Despite being unable to guarantee a stable and consistent supply of electricity, Eskom says it remains committed to its role in unlocking the potential of the electric vehicle (EV) market in South Africa. The power utility released a statement last week saying that it is working with major players in this regard, and that the hurdles in the rollout of EVs in SA … Continue reading Struggling Eskom is bullish on the future of electric vehicles in SA

By Aarti Bhana A survey on the spending habits of students within the Generation Z age group – those born between the mid-1990s and the 2000s – reveals that South Africa’s students are savvy spenders who like to look good, and are using side ‘hustles’ to fund their activities. The report, released by Student Village on Thursday, shows that students spend R2 944 on average per … Continue reading SA’s Gen Z students spend R35bn per year – survey

By Aarti Bhana Electric vehicles are set to increase their presence on South African roads as more car manufacturers announce their intention to enter the industry in response to global trends. In 2018 alone, at least 1.6 million electric vehicles (EVs) were sold in the United States, Europe and China, and the uptake is only set to increase. This is according to Jaguar Land Rover … Continue reading More EVs for SA’s roads

By Aarti Bhana and Prinesha Naidoo Alexander Forbes has appointed Dawie de Villiers as its new CEO, less than a week after announcing the the termination of former CEO Andrew Darfoor’s contract. Read: Alex Forbes CEO fired He will assume the position of group CEO and as a director of the company from November 1, 2018 as well as director of a number of the company’s … Continue reading Alex Forbes snags Sanlam exec as new CEO

By Aarti Bhana Online fashion and retail is to undergo a makeover as two of South Africa’s most popular e-commerce sites, Spree.co.za and Superbalist.com, have announced the success of a merger that will create the largest online fashion offering in SA. Spree’s existing shareholder Media24 will hold 51% of the venture, while the Takealot Group’s Superbalist will own 49% of the new business, this including … Continue reading Superbalist, Spree merge to create SA’s biggest online fashion platform

By Aarti Bhana It’s time you start looking at your orange juice differently because it’s about to undergo a revolution. SA-based biotechnology company Green Cell Technologies has signed an agreement with Brazil-based orange juice producing company, Citrosuco to revolutionise the way orange juice is produced. Green Cell is granting Citrosuco an initial two-year license for the use of its Dynamic Cellular Disruption (DCD) process and … Continue reading Bring on the juice revolution

By Aarti Bhana South Africans are paying more attention to their spending habits, as price adjustments to fuel, VAT and sugar put additional pressure on their pockets. The BankservAfrica Economics Transaction Index (Beti) shows that in May transactions declined the most since September 2013. The decline in real terms between May and April was -2% on a seasonally adjusted basis. This, according to BankservAfrica, is … Continue reading May transaction data shows an economy in poor stead

By Aarti Bhana South Africa’s informal food sector makes up at least 40% of the food market, meaning that informal trading contributes notably to the economy, while providing consumers with easy access to food staples. The informal food sector is valued at about R404 billion, compared with the formal food sector, which holds the other 60% of the market. Collectively the market is worth R1.02 … Continue reading The flourishing informal food sector